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Baylor Football
Baylor wins Cactus Bowl, completes seventh-straight winning season
PHOENIX — KD Cannon, Orion Stewart and those on Baylor's side of the line of scrimmage made sure the Bears avoided its first losing season dating back to 2009 when they thumped the Boise State Broncos 31-12 in the Cactus Bowl on Tuesday evening.
Baylor (7-6) entered into the bowl game as underdogs to Boise State (10-3) after dropping six consecutive games to end the regular season and was in desperate need of a win to make the transition into the Matt Rhule era smoother.
The new Baylor head coach had a lot to be pleased with on both sides of the ball.
Playing possibly his final game as a Bear, Cannon, a junior who is eligible for the 2017 NFL Draft, set a Cactus Bowl record with 14 receptions for 226 yards and two touchdowns. A senior, Stewart made plays all over the field including an interception in the end zone, a fumble recovery, and sack.
Baylor went on to out gain Boise State to 383 including holding star running back Jeremy McNichols 46 yards on 19 carries.
Baylor began the game with a promising eight-play drive that ended in a Zach Smith interception and then turned the ball over on downs on their next possession, but the Bears then converted their next three possessions to take a 21-6 lead into the half.
Smith and Cannon carried the bulk of the load for the Bears in the first half, connecting eight times for 182 yards and two scores. The duo combined to make up over half of Baylor's 353 first half yards.
After a dropped fourth-down conversion on the previous possession, Smith found Cannon for the first score of the game on a 30-yard pass where the junior receiver jumped over the top of a defensive back for a highlight reel catch and score. The score came plays after Smith found Cannon for 49 yards on the drives first play.
Boise State converted on a 24-yard field goal on their following possession to cut the lead to 7-3, but Smith and Cannon didn't take long to extend Baylor's lead out to two scores. After a holding penalty on first down, Smith found Cannon for a 68-yard score.
Redshirt freshman running back JaMycal Hasty capped off Baylor's first half scoring with five-yard touchdown run to end a 15 play, 99-yard drive which started following an Orion Stewart interception in the end zone that was returned to their own one-yard line.
Boise State opened the second half with the ball hoping to cut into the lead even more after finishing the first half with a field goal, but a pass into the end zone fell incomplete on fourth down to turn the ball over to the Bears.
The Bears then moved the ball methodically down the field on a 21 play drive that covered 78 yards in 78 yards. A 34-yard field goal by Chris Callahan extended Baylor's lead to 24-6 with 3:19 remaining in the third.
Baylor found the end zone for the final time early in the fourth quarter. After running backs Terence Williams and JaMycal Hasty carried the load on a 71-yard drive, Smith found sophomore receiver Ishmael Zamora for a 14-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 31-6.
Boise State scored their first touchdown of the game with 1:20 remaining to make the final score 31-12.
Sophomore running back Terence Williams finished the game with 103 yards on 25 carries, a total that put Williams over 1,000 yards for the season. Also a sophomore, Smith finished the night by completing 28-of-39 passes for 375 yards and three scores against only one interception.
Baylor (7-6) entered into the bowl game as underdogs to Boise State (10-3) after dropping six consecutive games to end the regular season and was in desperate need of a win to make the transition into the Matt Rhule era smoother.
The new Baylor head coach had a lot to be pleased with on both sides of the ball.
Playing possibly his final game as a Bear, Cannon, a junior who is eligible for the 2017 NFL Draft, set a Cactus Bowl record with 14 receptions for 226 yards and two touchdowns. A senior, Stewart made plays all over the field including an interception in the end zone, a fumble recovery, and sack.
Baylor went on to out gain Boise State to 383 including holding star running back Jeremy McNichols 46 yards on 19 carries.
Baylor began the game with a promising eight-play drive that ended in a Zach Smith interception and then turned the ball over on downs on their next possession, but the Bears then converted their next three possessions to take a 21-6 lead into the half.
Smith and Cannon carried the bulk of the load for the Bears in the first half, connecting eight times for 182 yards and two scores. The duo combined to make up over half of Baylor's 353 first half yards.
After a dropped fourth-down conversion on the previous possession, Smith found Cannon for the first score of the game on a 30-yard pass where the junior receiver jumped over the top of a defensive back for a highlight reel catch and score. The score came plays after Smith found Cannon for 49 yards on the drives first play.
Boise State converted on a 24-yard field goal on their following possession to cut the lead to 7-3, but Smith and Cannon didn't take long to extend Baylor's lead out to two scores. After a holding penalty on first down, Smith found Cannon for a 68-yard score.
Redshirt freshman running back JaMycal Hasty capped off Baylor's first half scoring with five-yard touchdown run to end a 15 play, 99-yard drive which started following an Orion Stewart interception in the end zone that was returned to their own one-yard line.
Boise State opened the second half with the ball hoping to cut into the lead even more after finishing the first half with a field goal, but a pass into the end zone fell incomplete on fourth down to turn the ball over to the Bears.
The Bears then moved the ball methodically down the field on a 21 play drive that covered 78 yards in 78 yards. A 34-yard field goal by Chris Callahan extended Baylor's lead to 24-6 with 3:19 remaining in the third.
Baylor found the end zone for the final time early in the fourth quarter. After running backs Terence Williams and JaMycal Hasty carried the load on a 71-yard drive, Smith found sophomore receiver Ishmael Zamora for a 14-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 31-6.
Boise State scored their first touchdown of the game with 1:20 remaining to make the final score 31-12.
Sophomore running back Terence Williams finished the game with 103 yards on 25 carries, a total that put Williams over 1,000 yards for the season. Also a sophomore, Smith finished the night by completing 28-of-39 passes for 375 yards and three scores against only one interception.
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